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The last police officer in a Colorado community has submitted her resignation, leaving residents anxious about the future, according to CBS Colorado.
Chief Jennifer Fine-Loven of the Nederland Police Department is set to leave the force on September 30, and if the position isn't filled by then, there won't be anyone serving the mountain town. Two other officers recently left the department, as well.
"She [Fine-Loven] has been keeping things afloat for two months now," Claudia Schauffler, who owns a store near the police department, told reporters. "There's no reason why in my mind to figure out some plan to keep her and give her what she needs. That is more police officers."
Even though crime doesn't happen very often in the community, residents don't feel comfortable with no police officers around to keep them safe.
"Nederland, like some towns, does have some crime and some issues but it’s relatively infrequent," Ryan Blackwell, owner of Boogie Records in Nederland, told FOX 31. “Most people are in support of a local police department and obviously if that means raising the taxes to support it and pay for it, so far the consensus across the board is that people are willing to pay the extra taxes to have local protection."
CBS Colorado says a variety of factors over several years led to officers leaving the police department and hiring woes. Town officials are currently working with the Boulder County Sheriff's Office to provide more cops until they find a permanent solution. They're also working on getting an interim marshal in the meantime.